Josef Estermann (philosopher)

Josef Estermann (born November 8, 1956 in Sursee (Switzerland)) is a Swiss philosopher and theologian who became famous for his studies of interculturality , the indigenous theologies and philosophies of Latin America or Abya Yalas and the Andean worldview.

Live and act

Estermann completed his theology and philosophy studies in Switzerland (Lucerne) and the Netherlands (Nijmegen, Utrecht and Amsterdam). He obtained a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Utrecht (Netherlands) with a thesis on Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz and a licentiate in theology from the University of Lucerne (Switzerland) with a thesis on Johann Baptist Metz .

From 1990 to 1998 he lived in Cusco (Peru), where he worked as a specialist for the Bethlehem Mission Society (SMB) in a poor district and also worked as a lecturer at various educational institutions. The interest in autochthonous cultures and wisdom stems from this time, especially in the Andes (Quechua and Aimara). From 1998 to 2003 Estermann lived in Maastricht (Netherlands) and worked as director of the Missio eV (MWI) Institute of Missiology in Aachen (Germany), together with Raúl Fornet-Betancourt . Among other things, he was editor of the magazine Chakana; Intercultural forum for theology and philosophy .

From 2004 to 2012 Estermann lived in La Paz (Bolivia) and worked as a lecturer and researcher at the Andean Ecumenical Theological College ( Instituto Superior Ecuménico Andino de Teología : ISEAT), the State University of San Andrés ( Universidad Mayor de San Andrés : UMSA), the Catholic University of San Pablo ( Universidad Católica Boliviana San Pablo : UCB) and the Andean University of Simón Bolívar ( Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar : UASB). He devoted himself to the research and dissemination of Andean philosophy and theology, but also to teaching in the field of philosophy , religious studies and theology .

Since 2013 he has been head of the RomeroHaus (Lucerne; Switzerland), education center of the Bethlehem Mission Immensee (BMI), member of the management board of COMUNDO and lecturer at the University of Lucerne . Among other things, he is visiting professor in Frankfurt am Main and Salzburg .

Think

After completing his studies, Josef (José) Estermann became interested in models of non-European thinking, especially in Latin American approaches and trends. The works of Emmanuel Lévinas and Johann Baptist Metz were of particular importance in this further development . In the 1990s, Estermann took a turn in his thinking and since then has mainly devoted himself to researching the indigenous wisdom teachings of Latin America ( Abya Yala ) and the further development of intercultural philosophy .

Andean philosophy

Estermann is one of the pioneers of the Andean philosophy , a wisdom that is characteristic of the Andean peoples of Abya Yala . To do this, he applies the methodology and the epistemological approach of intercultural philosophy and draws on the support of ethnology , linguistics ( Quechua and Aymara ) and historiography (chronicles). Estermann is convinced that the Andean philosophy is a genuine philosophy with its own rationality and epistemology . In his opinion, it is neither about a pre-colonial philosophy, nor about a simple adaptation or "inculturation" of Western philosophy, but about a certain (indigenous) appearance of the liberation philosophy .

Intercultural philosophy

Estermann has been involved in the debate on intercultural philosophy since the mid-1990s . He contributes to making this new philosophical perspective fruitful for the question of the so-called "indigenous philosophies", but also for a dialogue between the most important currents of Latin American philosophy and the autochthonous doctrines of wisdom. Estermann is a member of ASAFTI, the South American Association of Intercultural Theology and Philosophy (Asociación Sudamericana de Filosofía y Teología Interculturales) .

Andean theology

Estermann has also made a name for himself in the development and dissemination of a genuine "Andean theology" that is much more than a mere imitation or inculturation of European theologies. It is a genuine continuation of the Latin American theology of liberation . In this context he also began the theological and philosophical Eurocentrism , Okkzidentozentrismus, androcentrism and Neukolonialismus deconstruct and to initiate a dehellenization the two branches of knowledge in the way.

Intercultural-global education

Estermann is also in the field of international cooperation, the debate on the different development paradigms, the connection between development and religion, the criticism of academic and scientific Eurocentrism and the design of alternative models such as the Andean “ good life ” (suma qamaña; allin kawsay ) active. In the field of pedagogy and with a view to constructive, solidarity and critical globalism, it addresses a process of intercultural learning worldwide (“worldwide learning”).

Works

• Filosofía Andina: Estudio Intercultural de la Sabiduría Autóctona. Quito 1997.
• Andean philosophy: intercultural study of indigenous Andean wisdom. Frankfurt a. M. 1999.
• Teología Andina: Antología. La Paz 2005.
• Filosofía Andina: Sabiduría indígena para un mundo nuevo. La Paz 2006.
• Si el Sur fuera el Norte: Chakanas interculturales entre Andes y Occidente. La Paz y Quito 2008.
• Interculturalidad: Vivir la diversidad. La Paz 2009.
• Compendio de la Filosofía Occidental en Perspectiva Intercultural. 5 volumes. La Paz 2011 (Vol. 1: Introducción al Pensamiento Filosófico ; Vol. 2: Filosofía Antigua y Medieval ; Vol. 3: Filosofía Moderna ; Vol. 4: Filosofía Contemporánea ; Vol. 5: Filosofía Sistemática .)
• Apu Taytayku: Religion and Theology in the Andean Context of South America. Frankfurt a. M. 2012.
• Cruz y Coca: Hacia la descolonización de la Religión y la Teología. La Paz 2013.
• Más allá de Occidente: Apuntes filosóficos sobre interculturalidad, descolonización y el Vivir Bien andino. Quito 2014.

literature

• David Sobrevilla: La filosofía andina del P. Josef Estermann. In: Solar , No. 4, Vol. 4, Lima 2008. pp. 231-247.
• A. Tavares (Interviewer): A Filosofia Andina: uma interpelação ao pensamento ocidental. Colonialismo, colonialidade e descolonização para uma interdiversidade de saberes (J. Estermann). In: EccoS , São Paulo, No. 32, Sept / Dec. 2013. pp. 197-252.
• Vesna Roccon: Filosofia andina. Josef Estermann e Mario Mejía Huamán: due approcci interculturali a confronto. Universitá degli Studi di Trento. Trento 2012.
• A Filosofia Andina: uma interpelação ao pensamento Ocidental. Colonialismo, colonialidade e descolonização para uma interdiversidade de saberes (J. Estermann). In: http://www4.uninove.br/ojs/index.php/eccos/article/view/4620
• Nelson Gutiérrez Rued: Reseña de Josef Estermann, Cruz y Coca: Hacia la descolonización de la Religión y la Teología. ISEAT y Librería Armonía, La Paz 2013, ISBN 978-99954-854-5-0 . In: Religión e incidencia pública. Revista de investigación de GEMRIP 2: pp. 233-237. [Revista digital]. In: < http://www.gemrip.com.ar >
• Vera Rüttimann: At eye level with the south. In: Wendekreis 10 / October 2014. p. 38.

Web links

• Literature by and about Josef Estermann in the catalog of the German National Library
• Biography and information on visiting professorships at Goethe University